The duke paraded through our group to accept a handshake from Headmaster Vaughan, then he turned a searing stare upon his son. “Are you a part of this, Rushland?”
Rush coughed and blinked. “A part of what, sir?”
His father sniffed and snapped his fingers at one of his men, who quickly placed a gilded, leatherbound book in his hand. “You will rue the day you chose to steal from me,” seethed the duke. His eyes slid briefly to me, then his expression brightened as he turned back to Headmaster Vaughan. “I found the documentation you requested. Arrived from Avencia this morning.”
He passed the leather book to Vaughan, who turned it in his hands. The letters shone on the front, and I spied a flash of green between the hubs on the spine. Vaughan held the book in his arm and flipped it open to the page marked with a purple ribbon. His finger slid down the page, then paused. His brows lifted.
Then he peered up at me. “Royalty?”
The duke’s lips spread in a thin smile. “It appears so. Merlon was right, after all.”
“About what?” I asked, pulse rising. Rush kept his face fixed on the windows, his jaw hardened and his shoulders pinned back.
“Come, take a look.” Headmaster Vaughan set the book on his desk and carefully spun it, his finger pressed to one line.
Tentatively, I moved toward the book and peered down at the words.
Names. Alphabetized by surname. Dates were handwritten beside the names and crests had been penned at the top of each page.
Beneath the headmaster’s finger was a crest labeledMiro.
It was a genealogy.
Headmaster Vaughan tapped the first name on the list. “Do you know who this is?”
I shook my head. The name Cas Miro didn’t mean anything to me.
“He was a prince. The son of one of the Ancients. First generation godborn.”
Vanya inhaled behind me.
“Okay,” I said, not following.
“And this,” said the headmaster, sliding his finger down the page, “was your great-great-great-grandfather. Who changed your surname to Mireaux when he came to Cavaria.”
I stared at the name Florentin Miro. Beside it was writtensee also Mireaux.
My attention snapped to the duke, who was staring at me like a cat who’d caught a mouse. He nodded curtly. Then waved for the book to be handed back to him. The bearded man on his left stepped forward and gathered the book. It flipped shut with a definitivepopand my focus fixed on the glint of light coming from the spine of the book.
The duke accepted the genealogy, tucking it against his side so that the spine faced me. Embedded in the leather was a sparkling green emerald.
Pinching my lips to keep from gaping, I tried to collect myself. I needed the duke to think my discomfort was at this revelation, not the fact that I knew the book was using magic to alter the contents. “So I’m…related to royalty?” I said, trying to sound genuinely shocked.
Vanya pressed her fingers to her lips, hiding a small smile. She didn’t know what the emerald meant.
“It would appear that you are,” said the headmaster, his voice full of excitement as he moved around his desk. “Your heritagewas, regrettably, called into question after discovering your family’s home, my dear. My sincerest apologies.” He actually bowed to me. “But now that we have proof that you are indeed a Miro, as you originally claimed, there is absolutely no reason not to reinstate you as a student at Cardan Lott. A most esteemed and welcome student.” He opened his arms wide, eyes moving toward the duke for affirmation.
“Of course,” the duke said, his voice dripping with unctuous courtesy as he offered me the smallest of bows. “Any bonded rider is welcome here.”
My mouth went dry as I faked a smile back at him. He was trying to cover up the fact that a bottomsider could bond. And he had the means to do so. Magic had altered that genealogy to include my family, I was certain of it. He stood there, brazenly showing off the emerald in the spine of the book, testing me. He needed to know if I understood the meaning of the emerald, and he assumed he could read my reaction right here, right now, to prove what I knew.
I had to throw him off course.
Picturing how excited Evie would be if I could ever tell her wewererelated to ancient royalty brought quick tears to my eyes, knowing it was only a lie. But the tears were helpful as I turned to the duke. “Thank you, sir,” I breathed, dabbing at my eyes the way a woman should, according to Fairfax’s hasty instructions during the week prior to the start of term, when he’d tried to round off the blunt edges of my manners. “How can I ever thank you for showing me this kindness?”
I hoped it sounded genuine. I needed him to believe me, considering I’d just robbed him, and he knew it. From behind the duke, Rush shifted his weight, expression still devoid of all emotion.
The duke’s lips twitched faintly. “Ah. It was a necessity, nothing more. We can’t have imposters entering our greatschool. Your sponsor, despite his good intentions, simply does not have the resources I have at my disposal.” He tucked the book tighter against his side. “It is always a pleasure to help those in need.”
